Cycling News Today 14 March 2006
Davitamon for MSR, Rider News, Matti Breschel, Cunego to appear at Bologna Fair, Thurig signs to '08 with Univega, Cycling Biz Oneone Wood Travel, WADA Office in Middle East and more...

Wednesday Coaching Chats:
The popular Weekly Coaching Chats return to the Daily Peloton Chat Room.
Bring your training questions and join in with Ryan and other cyclists in the chat about training and racing.

Ryan  Barrett USA Certified Coach
Where: Daily Peloton Chat Room: http://www.dailypeloton.com/chat.asp
When: Wednesdays 11 am Pacific Time, 9 pm UK, 10 pm CET, Please adjust to your local time.
Log into the Daily Peloton Chat,  no registration necessary... choose a name and log in and join us.

Preselection Milano – San Remo
The 8 Davitamon-Lotto racers for Milan-San Remo of coming 18/03 will be chosen from the following 10 rider:
• Aerts Mario
• Brandt Christophe
• Jufré Pou Josep (Spa)
• Leukemans Björn
• McEwen Robbie (Aus)
• Steegmans Gert
• Van Bon Leon (Ned)
• Vansevenant Wim
• Vansummeren Johan
• Vogels Henk (Aus)

Lampre Fondital to visit Bologna Fair
Saronni and Cunego to appear
In the evening of the 16th of March, a delegation from Lampre-Fondital cycling team will be pleased to visit, in Bologna fair, the exposition of the historical sponsor Lampre: the occasion in the fair Saiedue.

This is an appointment repeated every year: with it, the team thanks the sponsor Lampre for the passion and for the fundamental sustain given for the team activity.

Considering this, Lampre-Fondital chose to be at Lampre's stand (Padiglione 30, Stand D 47-C 44) with the most important cyclist: Damiano Cunego. The champion, with the company of the team manager Giuseppe Saronni and of the sport director, from 3 pm till 5 pm will meet Lampre's owner, the guests, and will be available for greeting the fans and for signing autographs.

Karin Thürig extends the contract with the
Univega Pro Cycling Team till 2008
The two times Time Trial World Champion Karin Thürig has decided to stay with the Univega Pro Cycling Team until 2008.
Karin Thürig, "I feel great in the team, and have been given the freedom to prepare myself for triathlon competitions and it is a very professional environment! In the end I welcome the decision for the early lengthening of my contract."

The Bean Team's Ride

The Bean Team's Ride Louis Graneau Carbon courtesy Micah Rice

Jittery Joe's Pro cycling team will be riding in style this year on the Louis Garneau 6.4 frame/fork in the new custom Bean Team orange Jittery Joe’s paint
Zero Gravity brakes
Cane Creek wheels
Cane Creek Headset
Maxxis Tires/tubes
Profile Design bar, stem, seat post, carbon bottle cages, bar tape, and optional aero equipment (not shown)
San Marco Saddles
The Hub water bottles filled with PowerBar Endurance
Pedro's lube and tool bag
Serviced by The Hub Bicycles
Zero Gravity’s new crank and bottom bracket will be added to the Louis Garneau team ride in the near future as soon as available.

Rider News:
Renäng Petter (Unibet.com) debuts in France.
Oldest of the talented Renäng-bothers will make his  2006 season debut, after a knee operation in Criterium International. The Scandinavian will seek his rhythm and to test his form in this stage-race, without any expectation for a big result. If rehab continues as positively as in the last weeks, Petter is expected to be running at full speed by June where he hopes to show a result in some of the 3 to 5 day stage races..
Petter is at the moment training hard in Malaga from where he will transfer to central-France for Criterium International.

Jonas Ljungblad (Unibet.com) First big typical Flemish race for Swedish Champ Jonas Ljungblad, will race this Wednesday Nokere Koerse. For Ljungblad this is the first 1.1 Flemish race of the season.
ACSO-agency is very enthusiastic about Jonas' selection, as ACSO-sportmanagement is located in Kruishoutem of a neighbor of  Nokere.

Tom Stubbe (Chocolade Jaques) back in business at Castilla Y Leon. Stubbe will return to racing the pro-peloton after a bad fall in Qatar, where the promising  youngster broke his collarbone.

Home race in Nokere for Flemish ACSO-Sportsmanagement & Riders:
Acso-sportmanagement was founded in 2004 in Kruishoutem. On Wednesday, the 1.1-race Nokere Koerse in Flanders is held in Kruishoutem. The management is proud to present this year 2 of Sweden's most promising  talents to Belgian cycling world: Swedish Road-Champ Jonas Ljungblad and the Swedish TT Champ Viktor Renäng.
French talent Boucher; and Belgian athletes Caethoven and Meul, also represented by  the Flemish agency ACSO, are on the start-list for Nokere-Koerse.
ACSO-manager Onderbeke hopes that his youngsters will use this occasion to show their talents in the best light to the Flemish Fans.
Courtesy: WWW.ACSO.BE

CSC's Matti Breschel
Mid last week Team CSC's Matti Breschel was transferred from the hospital in Torhout to Oudenaarde where he started mild rehabilitation exercise.
The injuries the young Dane suffered turned out to be more serious than initially assumed after his crash in the last stage of the Three Days of West-Flanders and Breschel has been confined to his hospital bed most of the time. Matti is allowed to head back home tomorrow Wednesday but he will be wearing a special harness to protect his torso.

"At times I feel really good - guess that is when I've been given a fresh batch of painkillers (laughs). I get up and move around more easily then. My mum even took me out for a breath of fresh air yesterday. I've got to say it's a special experience to be in a wheelchair. Seeing the cobbled streets normally gives me a real buzz and then I can't wait to get on the bike and ride them; but now I had complete different feelings!

"It's been great to get that many heart-warming messages from the Belgian people and fans from all over via e-mail. Johan Museeuw has checked on me regularly and it's really nice of him to be so concerned about my progress." Being in a Belgian hospital for 10days had an upside too Breschel remarks:
"I received plenty of chocolate and that's a real treat of course; but I've got to be careful not to put on any weight, so mum and my younger brother Casper are going to enjoy them most for a while to come!"

"I've remained positive all along and feel things are heading in the right direction (which is not that obvious with the major renovation works going on right above his room). The headaches are definitely getting less; but my back is killing me at times. The lack of movement is the main cause I think of that and I'm sure Ole Foli (team CSC Body SDS Therapist) will have his work cut out. But I am looking forward to going back to Denmark and get back on the bike training as soon as possible. I'm motivated and eager to return to competition." he concluded.

Team G-Cross Honda:
23 Degrees Riders Gear up for 2006 Season
Following the recent signing of a new contract between the Honda Racing Corporation (owners of Team G Cross Honda) and 23 Degrees Sports Management, all looks set for another stellar year of racing for the successful mountain bike downhill team.

Both Greg Minnaar (Republic South Africa) reigning World Cup Champion, and Matti Lehikoinen (Finland), World #11, return to the team which will once again focus on the World Cup, as well as selected NORBA events in the USA.

Junior Champions signed:
Additionally, 23 Degrees will be sponsoring two junior development riders on the World Cup circuit, Junya Nagata (Japan) and Ruben Garcia (Spain), both of whom are reigning national junior champions, and who will be racing on Honda RN01 bikes supplied by Honda on Team 23 Degrees.

The first Downhill race of the season for all four riders will be World Cup #1 in Vigo, Spain, where expectations are high on surpassing the results from last year where Greg finished 2nd and Matti 7th.

This year Greg Minnaar will race in different coloured Alpinestars clothing to his team-mate, in recognition of his win of the Overall World Cup in '05. Greg has been busy testing with Honda in the off-season, as well as training in the summer of his home country South Africa.

Greg Minnaar, "I'm really looking forward to racing the new '06 Honda RN01 because our testing has been excellent. I've had a great off-season and I'm looking forward to defending my title in the World Cup. Also, due to event date clashes I'm unable to do all NORBA races, but with two throw out races being permitted, I'll contest 5 of the 7, and hopefully that's enough to give me a shot at the US title."

Matti Lehikoinen, "Finishing last season with a 6th in Fort William with my injured shoulder was a strange feeling. Even though it was my best result ever, I was disappointed to have had such an injury holding me back. After my surgeries in the off-season my shoulder and arm are 100% and I'm enjoying being back in downhill training again."

Junya Nagata, "I'm really excited to be riding a Honda again in 2006, but even more so about being able to race the RN01 on the World Cup circuit. It is my goal to continue improving as an international rider and also to increase the profile of Japanese mountain biking on the international stage. I look forward to my first race in 23 Degrees colours at Vigo in May."

Ruben Garcia, "It's such an honour for me to have this opportunity. After winning the National Title last year in my first year of top level racing, I was excited to represent Spain at the World Championships. Now I have the chance with my team mate to go to all the World Cups, and chase the new UCI Leader's Yellow jersey for the leading Junior in the World Cup, on one of the best bikes in the world."

Team Director Martin Whiteley, "We're excited to have retained both Greg and Matti for the coming season and we're confident in Greg's abilities to once again have a strong season, and for Matti to build on his success of last year, now that his injury is behind him. We are also excited about having two development riders in the 23 Degrees colours. The choice of Junya and Ruben was logical for us as we were looking for current Junior National Champions who are junior again in 2006. Junya has already raced on a Honda and is no stranger to the RN01, and Ruben was sponsored by 23 Degrees in 2005 when he won his title".
Team sponsors and suppliers in 2006 include:
Alpinestars Clothing
Showa Suspension
Maxxis Tyres
Formula Brakes
Mavic Wheels
SDG Seats/I-Beam Posts
Motorex Lubricants
SRAM/Truvativ Components
PowerBar Nutrition
Sapim Race Spokes
Easton Bars
Chris King (Headsets 4X)
ODI Grips
Further information: www.world.honda.com/mtb
www.23degrees-sports.com

Venezuelan Kimmy Diquez Leads USA World Ranking in BMX
Venezuelan Kimmy Diques leads the current rankings updated by the UCI Caracas (zciclismo) La Unión Ciclista Internacional (UCI) publico el ranking de los corredores de BMX (bicicross) donde la venezolana Kimmy Diquez se encuentra en el primer lugar de las mujeres elite luego de su actuación en las pistas de Mendoza en Argentina y Viña del Mar en Chile acumula 61 puntos mientras que para el segundo y tercer lugar se ubican dos argentinas, la campeona mundial Gabriela Díaz con 48 puntos y con 43 unidades Maria Dutto.
World BMX Rankings as of 14 March
Lugar Corredoras Nación Puntos
  1 DIQUEZ Kimmy VEN 61
  2 DIAZ Gabriela Maria ARG 48
  3 DUTTO Maria Belen ARG 43
  4 ORTIZ Karla CHI 40
  5 JUNGA Renee AUS 39
  6 BONEL Malena ARG 35
  7 CALLISTO Nicole AUS 34
  8 KINTNER Jill USA 34
  9 SGOBIN Ana Flavia Ribeiro BRA 31
10 CRANFIELD Krystal AUS 30
Hasta la proxima: Jose Manuel Zabala Cardenas www.zciclismo.blog.com

Cycling Biz News:
Oenone Wood to Guest in Fall Cycling Tour
Oenone Wood, the number one ranked rider in women’s professional cycling, will be the guest of honor during a 10 day fall cycling tour to Tuscany, Italy with the New York based cycling tour operator Vélo Classic Tours. Ms. Wood is the two time defending World Cup champion and is based in Germany during her European racing schedule. She accepted the invitation from Peter Easton, Director of Vélo Classic Tours.

Easton’s company specializes in high-end bicycling vacations to some of the most desirable destinations in cycling. He believes women cyclists at all levels do not get enough attention, and he is aiming to change that. “Our goal is to offer the same opportunities in both cycling and traveling to women as we do to men. Women make 75% of all travel decisions for couples. Many of our clients travel as couples, and we are hopeful that this trip will be a starting point for getting more women to decide to travel with us.”

Ms. Wood, 25, hails from the Australian Capital of Canberra and turned pro in 2005 with the German squad Equipe Nürnberger Versicherung, the number one team in the women’s ranks. Before that she raced with the Cycling Australia /AIS Women’s Team and the Australian National Team. An Olympian in 2004, Wood placed third in the World Championships in Madrid this past September. In addition to her World Cup titles in 2004 and 2005, she was the Australian Road Champion in 2004 and Australian Time Trial Champion in 2004 and again in 2005, before claiming bronze in this year’s national road race. She won the Women’s Geelong Tour in Australia in 2004 and 2005, and won Le Tour du Grand Montreal last season, as well as 3 stages in the Tour de l’Aude in France. A consistently strong racer, she heads into 2006 having held the world number one ranking since 2004.
 

WADA:
Regional Anti Doping Organization for Middle East
The two-day regional anti-doping meeting organised by the Oman Olympic Committee under the auspices of the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) concluded with a call for a drug-free sports world.
The participants were unified in their opinion to work towards a drug-free world.
At a press conference early in the morning at Grand Hyatt Muscat, Rob Koehler of Wada detailed that the meeting’s outcome was a regional centre in the Gulf and Kuwait was chosen for the Regional Anti-Doping Organisation (Rado) to be set up. Rado will be run by the governments and National Olympic Committees of the region.
According to Koehler, the Rado will comprise all the six AGCC countries — Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates and Kuwait — and Yemen. The meeting elected Saudi Arabia’s Dr Saleh Al Konbaz,  the
secretary-general of the Saudi Arabia Sports Medicine Association to the chairman's post.
Oman’s Dr Sultan Al Busaidi director of  medical services of Royal Oman Police (ROP), was named the vice-chairman; and Kuwait’s Mahmoud Khalifa Ali, Secretary General.
Ahmed Al Khazal (Kuwait), Dr Nasser Ali Asad Al Ansari (Qatar), Dr Ahmad Al Hasehemi (UAE), Dr Yahya Al Shaikh (Yemen) and one unnamed representative from Bahrain  will be members.
Sultan Al Busaidi said, the idea of the regional centre had sprung up during last year’s meeting in Qatar, and it is good that the Rado has taken shape. “Rado will certainly provide the mechanism to establish an anti-doping program in the region,” said Koehler, while adding, a regional body will ensure the implementation of Wada code.

The Wada official praised the Kuwait government, who readily offered to set up the Rado office and bear all the expenses in establishment of the office, and staff salary. Each of the member countries will provide funds for the Rado, which will be supported by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA).
Koehler urged the respective government and the respective national Olympic committees to support the anti-doping programs and educate athletes in the use of only permitted nutritional supplements and encourage out of competition testing.
The two-day meeting was attended by Layla Al Madani and Dr Hussain Al Haddad (Bahrain), Dr Saleh Al Konbaz (Saudi Arabia), Dr Ahmad Al Hasehemi and Dr Saeed Abdullah (UAE), Dr Mohammed Ghanem and Dr Nasser Ali Al Ansari (Qatar), Ahmed Al Khazal and Mahmoud Khalifa Ali (Kuwait), Dr Yahya Al Shaikh (Yemen), Dr Sultan Al Busaidi (Oman), Kazo Yahashy, Natalie Grenier and Rob Koehler (Wada).